STONY BROOK, N.Y. – Stony Brook volleyball head coach Kristin Belzung has introduced the signings of seven student-athletes that make up the 2023 signing class for the Seawolves.

“We couldn’t be extra excited so as to add these seven student-athletes to our 2023 roster.  This class brings an extremely high-level of membership volleyball expertise together with athleticism and a aggressive fireplace which is able to assist them each transition easily to school and proceed to develop throughout their time at Stony Brook. They’ve an incredible mixture of ball management and physicality and complement one another and our present student-athletes completely which is able to assist us proceed to construct within the CAA. As soon as once more, we really feel like we added the correct cultural match to Stony Brook College and are wanting ahead to seeing them develop on and off the courtroom throughout their time right here,” mentioned coach Belzung as she mentioned the 2023 signing class. 

Mercedes Motton | Center Blocker | Worthington, Ohio
Motton is a Worthington, Ohio, native out of Bishop Watterson Excessive College. She started her highschool profession at Thomas Worthington Excessive College. Motton performs center blocker and performs her membership volleyball for Mintonette Sports activities. She is a three-year member of the volleyball workforce at Bishop Watterson and has been a starter for all three years. She has additionally competed on the varsity wrestling workforce for 2 years. She earned Third Crew All-State honors as a senior and was chosen as an AVCA All-American, together with being a First Crew All-District participant.

“I selected Stony Brook as a result of the workforce is sort of a massive household and I’ve by no means felt so welcomed wherever else,” Motton mentioned. “One more reason I selected SBU is due to the placement. It’s a lovely faculty in a beautiful location.”

Rayanne Wheat | Setter | Mount Olive, Ala. 
Wheat is a Mount Olive, Alabama native, and is a setter for her membership volleyball workforce, Alabama Efficiency. Wheat was a starter for her varsity workforce for 5 years and was named Setter of the Yr. She was a member of the JVA Watchlist for 4 seasons, the Extremely Ankle Watchlist thrice, and performed on the USA Excessive Efficiency Seaside Crew. Within the classroom, she has been a member of the Honor Society for 2 years. Wheat will main in psychology at Stony Brook as a result of she desires to have the ability to assist individuals with the identical points that she has gone by.

“Stony Brook had every little thing that I used to be in search of in a future residence,” Wheat mentioned. “Their workforce atmosphere is one thing I attempt to be part of and contribute to. It’s academically difficult which can be what I used to be in search of.”

Ava Jackson | Pin Hitter | Lexington, Ky.
Jackson is a local of Lexington, Kentucky, and presently attends Paul Laurence Dunbar Excessive College. She performs membership volleyball for Lexington United. Jackson has been a five-year varsity member and has amassed 1,765 kills all through her profession. She totaled 601 kills this season. Jackson earned First Crew All-State honors as a junior and senior and was named the Area Participant of the Yr, together with the workforce’s Offensive MVP. She helped lead her workforce to a state championship runner-up end as a senior, turning into the third public faculty to ever make it to the state championship sport. Jackson was a 2022 All-Match choice for the state event.

“I selected Stony Brook College due to its welcoming and cozy ambiance,” she mentioned.”I additionally love the entire workers on campus who’re there to assist and make your expertise the very best it may be.” 

Madison Cigna | Defensive Specialist | Pittsburgh, Pa.
Cigna is a Pittsburgh native and presently attends Oakland Catholic Excessive College. She has been a three-year starter as a libero/defensive specialist on the varsity workforce and performs membership volleyball for Pittsburgh Elite. Cigna totaled 443 digs and 122 assists throughout her membership season in 2022. She has been an All-State choice twice and a First Crew All-Part choice thrice all through her highschool profession. Cigna has additionally been a two-time First Crew All-WPIAL (district) honoree. Within the classroom, Cigna is an AAU Educational All-American. She is going to examine enterprise and finance at Stony Brook and he or she comes from a volleyball household as her sister Taylor presently performs at Colgate.

“I actually just like the welcoming ambiance and the tradition of this system,” Cigna mentioned. “Stony Brook is a superb faculty academically and the mixture of suburb and metropolis is right for me.”

Ella Shields | Defensive Specialist | Northville, Mich.
Shields is a local of Northville, Michigan, and comes out of Mercy Excessive College. She performs membership volleyball for Legacy Volleyball Membership. She has performed 4 years of varsity volleyball at Mercy, totaling 300 kills, 267 digs, and 67 aces. Shields was named to the All-Catholic League workforce as a junior and senior. She was an All-State choice and an AAU All-American. She hails from a household of athletes, as her mom performed volleyball at Lincoln Memorial College and her father performed baseball at Lincoln Memorial College and went on to play for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. He was a World Collection champion in 2002.

“I selected to attend Stony Brook College as a result of the workforce and coaches are superb,” Shields mentioned. “The campus has a household really feel and everybody appears very welcoming.”

Ashleigh Woodruff | Center Blocker | Scarsdale, N.Y.
Woodruff is a local of Scarsdale, New York, and involves Lengthy Island from The Masters College. She performs membership volleyball for NYC Juniors Volleyball Membership. She has been a four-year member of the varsity volleyball and monitor groups in highschool. She was named her volleyball workforce’s MVP and earned the Panther of the Month award. Woodruff will examine biology at Stony Brook, due to her love for animals and science. She comes from a household of athletes, as her mom was a member of the rowing workforce at Brown College and her father performed basketball at Lake Forest Faculty. 

“Probably the most vital qualities I needed in a faculty was neighborhood,” Woodruff mentioned. “Time and time once more Coach Belz, Coach Justin (Dueck), and Coach Sarah (Bullock) confirmed me a tremendous neighborhood inside the volleyball workforce, and once I visited I obtained to see these similar qualities within the faculty itself.”

Ayanna Pierre Louis | Center Blocker | Austin, Texas
Pierre Louis is a local of Austin and comes out of Crockett Excessive College, the place she has been a four-year varsity volleyball participant. She performs membership volleyball for Austin Efficiency. At Crockett, she has totaled 307 kills, 417 digs, 50 blocks, and he or she averaged 2.7 kills per set. She led the workforce in blocks, kills per set, kills, and hitting proportion. Pierre Louis will examine biology at Stony Brook. 

“I selected Stony Brook for the volleyball program, campus measurement, location, and educational status,” she mentioned as she mentioned why she selected to attend Stony Brook. 

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